EP0661825B1

EP0661825B1 - Portable radio apparatus with rotating antenna

Info

Publication number: EP0661825B1
Application number: EP94309816A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Michio C/O Nec Corp. Nagai
Original assignee: NEC Corp
Current assignee: NEC Corp
Priority date: 1993-12-28
Filing date: 1994-12-23
Publication date: 2002-03-13
Anticipated expiration: 2014-12-23
Also published as: JPH07203524A; EP0661825A1; US5630211A; FI946098A0; JP2689881B2; FI946098A

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a portable radio apparatus and, more particularly, to a portable radio apparatus which is capable of easily orienting the antenna in a position providing improved gain.
In a conventional portable radio apparatus, there has been a problem that any radio apparatus used in the vicinity of a human body is subject to the absorption of part of the electromagnetic wave radiated from its antenna by the operator's head and the actual performance of the antenna is thereby deteriorated. Especially where the electromagnetic environment is unfavorable, there may be the fear of being disconnected from the other party.
In view of this problem, there is proposed an improved portable radio apparatus which is described in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 368023/1992 (JP-A-04-368023). Such a portable radio apparatus consists of a first body including a receiving section and a second body including a microphone. A bottom end of the first body is connected to the second body by a first hinge so that the portable radio apparatus is foldable. In addition, a planar antenna is connected to and supported by a second hinge at a top end of the first body so as to rotate from a front face of the first body toward a rear face thereof in order to position the antenna in an operating position.
When the planar antenna is placed in the backward leaning posture during communication, the planar antenna will be displaced from the operator's head, and accordingly the absorption of the electromagnetic wave by the human body is suppressed to restrain the performance deterioration.
However, the above-described portable radio apparatus has two separately-located hinges, one hinge located at the bottom of the first body for opening and closing the two apparatus bodies and the other hinge located at the top of the first body for opening and closing the planar antenna. Therefore, two manual operations are necessary to use the portable radio apparatus. Namely, when it is to be used, the first body including the receiving section must first be pivoted to an open position and the antenna must thereafter be pivoted to an open position.
European Patent Application No. 0508567 A2 discloses an antenna for portable telephone equipment. The antenna sits in a flap fitted to one end of the main body of the telephone, and is hinged to fold against the main body. The main body includes a second antenna. The main body antenna is used for signal reception when the flap has been folded onto the main body, and the flap antenna is unfolded for improved reception after a call has been received. European Patent Application No. 0508299 A1 also discloses a phone having a unitary body on one side of which is hinged an antenna. The telephone equipment of both of these references differs from the subject apparatus in that the telephone body, attached to the hinged antenna, in these references is housed in a unitary body rather than a two-part hinged body. U.S. Patent No. 5,260,998 discloses a telephone set with a two-part hinged body, but not with an antenna that is independently pivotal on the hinge between the parts of the body. Due to its rotation on the hinge means, the antenna of the subject invention may be rotated so as to extend further from a user's head during communication than is possible with the phone devices of the aforementioned references.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a portable radio apparatus including a rotatable antenna which is capable of reducing the adverse effects of interference by the human body on the antenna, and of allowing a first body and an antenna to be simultaneously rotated relative to a second body to an opened position.
An antenna-rotating-type portable radio apparatus, according to the present invention, includes a first body having at least a receiving section, a second body, a hinge section for connecting the first body and second body such that the first body can be rotated on a pivot axis with respect to the second body from a closed position to an open position, and a pivotally-connected antenna. The apparatus is characterized in that the antenna is pivotally connected to the hinge section so as to be rotatable on the pivot axis independently of rotation of the first body or the second body.
Preferably the second body includes a transmitting section, and the hinge section is intermediate the receiving section and the transmitting section, whereby an active part of the antenna extending from the hinge section is, during use of the apparatus, further away from a user of the apparatus than the receiving section and the transmitting section.
The antenna may be rotatably positioned on one end of the hinge section or both ends of the hinge section.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of this invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description, by way of example, taken with the accompanying drawings, in which:-
FIGs. 1(a) and 1(b) are plan and side views, respectively, of a preferred embodiment according to the present invention;
FIG. 2 is an exploded view showing a structure of the hinge section shown in FIG. 1;
FIGs. 3(a) to 3(c) are cross-sectional views taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 2, showing several relations between the pin and the groove;
FIGs. 4(a) and 4(b) are plan and side views, respectively, of another embodiment according to the present invention;
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a variation of an embodiment according to the present invention; and,
FIG. 6 is a side view for describing one example of the state of use according to the present invention.
In the drawings, the same reference numerals denote the same structural elements.
FIGs. 1(a) and 1(b) are plan and side views, respectively, of a preferred embodiment according to the invention. A main body or box of a portable radio apparatus is split into an upper box 1a having a receiving section 2 and a display section 3, and a lower box 1b having a keyboard section 4 and a transmitting section 5. A lower portion of the upper box 1a is pivotally connected to the upper portion of the lower box 1b by hinge section 1c. The width of the upper box 1b is greater than that of the lower box 1b. An antenna 6, which is a rectangular type and is adjacent to the lower box 1b, is similarly connected to be pivoted on the hinge section 1c.
When the lower box 1b is rotated from a closed position A (shown by the double dotted chained line) toward an open position B (shown by the solid line), the antenna 6 can also be swung open from the position A toward the position B. The antenna 6 can be further rotated by moving from the position B toward a position C, so that the distance between the head of a user and the antenna 6 can be maximized during communication. Incidentally, the antenna 6 is telescopically provided so that it can be moved in the direction of arrow X.
In the above-described embodiment shown in FIGs. 1(a) and 1(b), it is also possible to arrange the display section 3 in the lower box 1b. Correspondingly, the keyboard section 4 or the transmitting section 5, or both, can be arranged in the upper box 1a.
FIG. 2 is an exploded view showing a structure of the hinge section shown in FIG. 1.
The hinge section 1c shown in FIGs. 1(a) and 1(b) includes hinge portions 30a, 30b, 30c, 30d and 30e and shafts 31a and 31b. Hinge portions 30b and 30c are integral to the upper box 1a, hinge portions 30a and 30d are integral to the lower box 1b, and hinge portion 30e is integral to the antenna 6. The shaft 31a is inserted into receiving holes provided in hinge portions 30a and 30b so that the hinge portions 30a and 30b are rotatable around the shaft 31a as a first rotation axis. The shaft 31b is inserted into receiving holes provided in hinge portions 30c, 30d and 30e so that the hinge portions 30c, 30d and 30e are rotatable around the shaft 31b as a second rotation axis.
A pin 32 is fixedly received in hinge portion 30d so as to protrude therefrom at a position a predetermined radial distance from the second axis. An arcuate groove 33, in which the pin 32 is received, is formed in the opposing end face of the hinge portion 30e. The arcuate groove 33 extends over a predetermined angle with the second axis as a center and at the same radial distance as the pin such that the pin 32 is slidable in the groove 33. Therefore, the antenna 6 is rotatable independently of the lower box 1b over the predetermined angle (see FIG. 3(c)). On the other hand, the antenna 6 is rotatable together with the lower box 1b as shown in FIGs. 3(a) and 3(b).
FIGs. 3(a) to 3(c) are cross-sections taken along line 3-3 shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 3(a) is a diagram showing a relation between the pin 32 and the groove 33 in a condition where the main box 1 is closed. FIG. 3(b) is a diagram showing a relation between the pin 32 and the groove 33 in a condition where the main box 1 is opened and the lower box 1b and antenna 6 are at the same angular position. FIG. 3(c) is a diagram showing a relation between the pin 32 and the groove 33 in a condition where the main box 1 is opened and the antenna 6 is further rotated to the operating position.
In FIG. 3(a), the groove 33 has a first end 34a, which is in touch with the pin 32 when the main box 1 is closed, and a second opposite end 34b. As shown in FIG. 3(b), when the lower box 1b is opened, since the pin 32 abuts against the first end 34a of the groove 33, the antenna 6 is automatically opened together with the lower box 1b. The antenna 6 can be further rotated to a position at which the second end 34b abuts the pin 32 beyond the position of the lower box 1b, as shown in FIG. 3(c).
On the other hand, when the lower box 1b is pushed toward the upper box 1a to the closed position, since the pin 32 pushes the second end 34b of the lower box 1b, the antenna 6 is rotated together with the lower box 1b toward the upper box 1a. On the other hand, when the antenna 6 is pushed, since the pin 32 is pushed by the first end 34a, the lower box 1b is rotated toward the upper box 1a together with the antenna 6.
As described above, since one hinge section is used for rotating the antenna and either the upper box or the lower box, and the groove and the pin are, respectively, provided on the hinge portions of the antenna and the corresponding lower or upper box, an opening action or closing action of the antenna and the box is executed in a serial action.
FIGs. 4(a) and 4(b) are plan and side views, respectively, of another preferred embodiment according to the present invention. In this embodiment, the width of the lower box 1b is greater than that of the upper box 1a and the antenna 6 is adjacent to the upper box 1a. When the upper box 1a is swung open from the closed position D (shown by the double dotted chained line) toward an open position E (shown by the solid line), the antenna 6 is also automatically swung open from the position D to the position E. Furthermore, the antenna 6 can be further rotated from the position E to a position F, so that the distance between the head of the user and the antenna 6 is maximized during communication thereby minimizing interference by the operator's body. Incidentally, it is also possible to arrange either the display section 3 or the keyboard section 4, or both, in the lower box 1b. Further, the antenna 6 is telescopically provided.
In these embodiments described above, as illustrated in FIG. 5, it is also possible to install an antenna 7, spanning the upper box or the lower box, on both sides of the hinge section 1c.
Furthermore, in these above-described embodiments, as shown in FIG. 6, when the boxes 1a and 1b are closed and laid horizontally, the antenna 6 can be rotatably positioned irrespective of the position of the upper box 1a.
As hitherto described, since the hinge section, of a portable radio apparatus according to the present invention, for rotating the upper and lower boxes is also used for rotating the antenna, the antenna is automatically rotated when the upper or lower box is rotated, thereby simplifying the operation of using the portable radio apparatus. In addition, the portable radio apparatus makes it possible to maximize the distance between the antenna and the body of the user during communication, so that the antenna is substantially free from the adverse influence of the human body. Therefore, the antenna gain does not drop and the sensitivity of the portable radio apparatus does not decline.
Furthermore, when the portable radio apparatus is installed in a car-mounted receptacle, the antenna position can be so set as to avoid a drop in antenna gain.

Claims

A portable radio apparatus comprising:

a first body (1a) including at least a receiving section;

a second body (1b);

a hinge section (1c) for connecting said first body and said second body such that said first body can be rotated on a pivot axis with respect to said second body from a closed position to an open position; and,

a pivotally-connected antenna (6);

characterized in that the antenna (6) is pivotally connected to the hinge section (1c) so as to be rotatable on the pivot axis independently of rotation of the first body or the second body.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second body includes a transmitting section (5) and wherein the hinge section is intermediate the receiving section and the transmitting section, whereby an active part of the antenna extending from the hinge section is, during use of the apparatus, further away from a user of the apparatus than the receiving section and the transmitting section.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein said antenna is secured at one end of said hinge section.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein said antenna is secured at both ends of said hinge section.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said first body includes a display section (3) and said second body includes a keyboard section (4).
The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein said hinge section comprises:

a first hinge portion (30a) integral to said second body;

a second hinge portion (30b) integral to said first body and rotatably coupled with said first hinge portion;

a third hinge portion (30c) integral to said first body;

a fourth hinge portion (30d) integral to said second body and rotatably coupled to said third hinge portion;

a fifth hinge portion (30e) integral to said antenna; and

coupling means for mechanically coupling said fifth hinge portion with one of said third and fourth hinge portions such that said antenna rotates in response to rotation of a corresponding one of said first and second bodies.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein said hinge section comprises:

a first hinge portion integral to said second body;

a second hinge portion integral to said first body and being rotatably coupled with said first hinge portion;

a third hinge portion integral to said antenna; and,

coupling means for mechanically coupling said third hinge portion with one of said first and second hinge portions such that said antenna rotates in response to rotation of a corresponding one of said first and second bodies.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein said coupling means comprises:

a pin (32) provided in said one hinge portion and extending from an end face thereof; and,

a groove (33) formed in an opening end face of said fifth hinge portion in which said pin is received, said groove extending over a predetermined angle.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein one end (34a) of said groove (33) is pushed by said pin (32) when said corresponding one body is opened, so that said antenna is rotated with said corresponding one body.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein an opposite end (34b) of said groove (33) is pushed by said pin (32) when said corresponding one body is closed, so that said antenna (6) is rotated with said corresponding one body.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein said antenna is further rotatable by said predetermined angle until said pin abuts against one of said ends of said groove in a condition said first and second bodies are fixed.
The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said antenna is rotatable when said first and second bodies are closed.